NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Children in the U.S. are now
getting more of their calories from fruit juice and
sugar-sweetened beverages than they were 20 years ago,
according to a new analysis of national data published in
Pediatrics.

Limiting the consumption of "empty calories" by reducing
intake of sugar-sweetened beverages could help kids eat
healthier and stay slim, the study's authors, Dr. Y. Claire
Wang of the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health in New
York City and colleagues, conclude.

However, the authors of another study out today report that
children who drink 100 percent fruit juice are no more likely
to be overweight than kids who don't. What's more, say Dr.
Theresa A. Nicklas of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and
her team, juice drinkers ate more fruit and had a higher intake
of several nutrients including vitamin C, folate and potassium.

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"The science clearly shows that 100 percent juice is a
valuable contributor of nutrients to children's diets and it's
not associated with weight," Nicklas told Reuters Health in an
interview.

Both sets of researchers looked at the same data: the
National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), in
which people report what they ate in the previous 24 hours.
Wang and her team compared NHANES 1988-1994 and NHANES
1999-2004, while Nicklas and colleagues looked at 1999-2002
NHANES data.

"I don't think we are really saying opposite things," Wang
commented. "The focus of our study is to look at the trends."

Wang and her colleagues looked at the percentage of
calories consumed as sugar-sweetened beverages and fruit juice
from 1988 to 2004. On average, they found, kids 2 to 19 years
old got 242 calories a day from these beverages in 1988-1994,
and 270 calories daily in 1999-2004; intake of sugar sweetened
beverages increased from 204 to 224 calories daily while fruit
juice intake rose from 38 to 48 calories per day.

Preschoolers who drank fruit juice consumed an average of
10 ounces a day. However, the American Academy of Pediatrics
(AAP) recommends no more than six ounces daily for children one
to six years old. Children 7 to 18 years old should drink no
more than 12 ounces, or two servings, of fruit juice daily,
according to the AAP. Across children of all ages, average
fruit juice consumption was 12.4 ounces daily in 1999-2004, up
from 11.2 ounces in 1988-1994.

Two- to five-year-olds were consuming 176 calories a day
worth of sugar sweetened beverages, equivalent to more than a
can of soda, while 6- to 11-year-olds took in 229 calories in
sugar-sweetened beverages daily and 12 to 19 year olds consumed
356 calories, about the same as a 20-ounce bottle.

The sharpest increases in sugar-sweetened beverage
consumption, of 20 percent, were seen among 6- to 11-year-olds.
Consumption also rose more among Latino and African-American
children than whites.

Among teens, Wang and her team found, the 84 percent who
drank sugar sweetened beverages consumed 30 ounces daily or 360
calories, representing 16 percent of their calorie intake. A
15-year-old boy would have to spend an hour jogging or more
than three hours walking in order to burn off this amount of
extra calories, the researchers say.

Fruit juice isn't the problem, argues Nicklas, who points
out that the daily calorie increase represented by fruit juice
is quite small-just 10 calories between the two time periods.
"It explains such a small percentage of the calories in the
diet. We need to look at where are all the other calories
coming from."

Also, Nicklas notes, most Americans aren't meeting fruit
consumption requirements, and drinking 100 percent juice may be
one way to up fruit intake.

Fruit juices "can never replace the benefits of whole
fruit," said Wang. "However I do think that juices do contain
some essential nutrients and you cannot say the same thing
about sugar sweetened beverages."

Nicklas' study was funded by the US Department of
Agriculture and the Juice Products Association. The Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation and the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention provided support for Wang's research.

SOURCE: Pediatrics, June 2008; Archives of Pediatrics and
Adolescent Medicine, June 2008.